Book I: Honestly
by Patrykowski der Jaeger
Summary: 2 Years before "Lithium," Hunter is torn between the easy way and the hard way: Tori and Dustin. When Hunter must face himself, honesty is the best policy. Book I - Verlieben: to fall in love, in the 4V Series: Verlieben, Vermissen, Vergehen, Verbinden
1. Honestly

**Honestly, Chapter I**

_Honestly_

Mud flew through the air, slapping his visor as roars filled his eardrums. He pulled to the right, veering dangerously close to the edge, and then fixed his eyes on the black figure in front of him. He was fast, that was no doubt, but there was no way he'd win. His moves were too sloppy and he'd already risked falling several times. Hunter smirked as, in one spontaneous burst of energy; he swiftly glided past the one person ahead of him, easily winning the race.

Cheers echoed in his ears as he pulled his helmet off, his messy blond hair now free.

"That was awesome, dude," Dustin complimented, shaking his best friend's hand.

Hunter grinned, "Thanks man."

"Were you trying to make us nervous?" Tori asked with a sensual smile.

He smiled at her, "Were you nervous, Tor?"

"I wanted you to lose."

Hunter easily saw through her façade, "Right."

Dustin cleared his throat at the awkward silence due to the flirtatious nature of his comrades.

"So, who's up for pizza?"

"Nah, I'm not really hungry; I was gonna go call Blake," Hunter replied.

"Yeah, and I've gotta get to the beach before the swell dies down."

Dustin looked dejected, "Oh, sure."

With that, Tori said her goodbyes and began the trek towards her van, leaving Dustin and Hunter alone.

Dustin watched Hunter begin to walk away.

"Oh, Hunter," he called out in remembrance, "I was wondering if maybe you wanted to come over tonight and watch a movie or something."

Hunter looked torn. He knew where that movie watching session would lead, and that situation would definitely make his friendship with Dustin even more complicated than it currently was.

"Uh…"

Dustin's eyes pleaded, but the brunet remained quiet, awaiting an answer.

"…yeah, just let me get showered and everything. I'll be there around 8?"

The former yellow ranger's face broke into a beaming smile, "Yeah, sure dude."

Hunter gave a nod and then went on his way.

The sun was sinking into its otherworldly bed but Tori paid no attention. She subconsciously wiggled closer to the warm body holding her, taking in the scent and the safe environment. His room was always the same: not messy, not nitpicked clean, but just right. The only mess she could see so far was the abundance of clothes they'd both removed from each other in a speedy manner; a mass of blue and red garments strewed near the foot of his bed.

"Tor…my arm's asleep," he said, chuckling slightly.

She laughed slightly as well, moving her head so his arm could regain feeling.

"Sorry about that."

He shook his head, "It's fine…" then he paused, "What time is it?"

"Almost 6:30, why?"

She turned to look him in the face so they were less than centimeters from each other. She noted how intensely blue his eyes were, especially in the soft radiance of fading sunlight. Her mind traced the curvature of his lips—the same ones she'd kissed so many times in secretive passion. Then his face shifted as he began to speak about something she cared nothing about. She just watched him speak in such simple beauty.

"You didn't even hear a word I said, did you?" he asked.

She nodded quietly.

He rolled his eyes and took her in his arms, still caught in his emotional confusion. Who was he to choose? _How_ was he to choose? Tori would be the easiest route, which was certain. She provided everything he needed to live a normal life and she was a girl that would definitely be ready to settle down and start a family, given she could provide a family. While Dustin, on the other hand, would provide spontaneity, constant companionship, loyalty, and youth; at the same time, he would never be able to provide a biological family and the journey through their relationship would be extremely difficult.

"When are we going to tell people about us?" Tori asked, interrupting his thoughts with a bomb-sized question.

Hunter instinctively responded, "Soon. I just…I don't want Blake to hate me."

Tori nodded, but on the inside, she was irritated—hurt, even. That had been Hunter's excuse for 3 months precisely. Blake. How long would it take Blake to get over her? And why did Hunter feel the need to meet secretively yet compassionately.

"Tor?" he whispered, sensing something was wrong, "I promise; soon."

She smiled as he gently kissed her and she photographed the scene privately.

"Shower?" she asked quietly.

He smirked and pulled her out of bed, carrying her to her bedside bathroom.

Frantically, Dustin tidied his living room. It was already "neat" but he wanted it perfect—everything had to be perfect for Hunter.

"Are you…cleaning?"

Dustin looked to the curious voice's source.

"Uh…yeah; company."

"I see. She must be mighty special," the voice continued.

Dustin laughed, "It's not like that mom, it's just Hunter."

She smiled inwardly. She was no fool, she knew about her son's feelings towards the blond man. She'd seen the obvious looks between the two and the smoldering sexual tension that encompassed them.

"Oh, Hunter! Has he eaten already? I can whip something up before dad and I leave."

Dustin laughed, "Mom…it's fine."

"Do you want me to leave money for a pizza or something? I don't want you boys dying of starvation while we're gone."

"Humans can go like, 3 weeks without food; but yeah, pizza would be nice," he smiled. Cam's useless ninja survival facts were fun to recite.

Smirking, she replied, "I'll leave 50; go wild."

If she only knew…

"You ready hon?" his father asked, straightening his tie as he entered the living room.

"You know it."

Dustin laughed inside himself; his family was so perfect…except for the terrible secret he'd hidden deep inside. That could never get out. It would devastate his mother and father to the point where he'd be incapable of living with himself.

"Have fun guys," Dustin said, waving as they exited.

"Be good," his mom teased as she shut the door.

A gripping fear came upon Dustin. Did she know? Of course not, she couldn't know. They'd been so secretive, so careful, and so undeniably evasive of the matter, that there was no possible way anyone could have known. She could speculate, sure, but she would never know. She couldn't. Several raps on the door awakened him from his subconscious ramblings.

Jumping up, Dustin swung the door open to greet Hunter.

"Sup dude?" Hunter asked casually as he stepped in.

"Not much, you?"

"Same."

The crimson-clad male strolled through the living room as he kicked his shoes off near the doormat.

"So what movie'd you feel like watching?" Dustin asked, closing the door.

"Ah…anything that's _not _a chick flick."

Dustin chuckled forcibly.

"I've got a couple comedies."

"How about something deep? I'm feeling philosophical," Hunter joked.

"Oh, actually dude, I've got this great movie Tori made me watch a couple months ago."

Hunter cleared his throat slightly at the mention of Tori.

Dustin's face twitched a bit but he carried on, "It's called _Garden State_."

"As in New Jersey?"

"I guess."

"Cool. Got any food?"

Dustin, putting in the movie, pointed with the DVD remote to the counter, "There's money on the counter for a pizza. You know what we like."

Hunter scanned the statement but rejected any innuendo that could've possibly been hidden. He made his way to the counter and picked up the cordless, watching Dustin's intricate yet clumsy movements. What was it about him that made him so…appealing? What was it about him that could evoke Hunter's worst, darkest cravings? What was it about Waldo Brooks that made Hunter feel a normal life was worth giving if it meant being with him?

"Tell me you didn't get sausage," Dustin pleaded as he plopped onto the couch adjacent Hunter's chosen sofa-chair.

"Oops…"

"Agh…what else did you get?"

"I didn't get sausage. I got that supreme thing with extra cheese instead of sausage and some breadsticks. I'm hungry," Hunter laughed.

Dustin grinned, "More like greedy."

Hunter returned the banter, "Don't forget selfish."

Dustin somewhat flinched. That actually _did _make sense. Hunter wanted Tori, Dustin knew that much. Hell, Hunter probably already _had _Tori; it was just that he insisted on pulling Dustin into the fray as well. He didn't care about Dustin's feelings towards him, he only cared about the satisfaction he got. Hunter Bradley was indeed selfish.

"I guess I can agree there," Dustin said, all joking aside.

Hunter sensed the change in tone instantly.

"Dustin…"

"You know, dude, it's like…I know it's wrong. I know it's wrong on so many levels—and I know you're with Tori, that much is obvious, but…that still doesn't stop me. And it should, I know it should—"

"Dustin."

"But it doesn't, it's like I don't even care. I guess that's kind of how you must feel huh?"

"Dustin, stop."

"You know Tori and I are best friends dude, we've been friends since I can remember. Yet here we are secretly fighting for you, for one prize; and let me say it's one hell of a prize."

"Dustin, shut up."

"I probably should, you know? Let's just go back to being quiet and hushing everything up, so that in a little while, you and Tori can go public, you and I will continue to be 'best friends' for all to see…but what happens to this?"

Hunter looked aside. He could feel the anger building up in him, yet there was something inside of him laughing like this was all foreseen. Which, in all fairness, it was; Hunter knew something like this would happen. It was human nature to be competitive; he just didn't know Dustin had that part of human nature.

"I—I dunno…" Hunter replied, having found his voice.

"When are we finally gonna be able to be honest?"

"We are honest…sometimes."

"I'm not talking about to others, Hunter; I don't care if you lie to them, just don't lie to yourself. Try being honest with yourself, you'd be amazed where it'll get you."

With that, the earth ninja stood and excused himself to the bathroom, leaving Hunter with the words echoing. He wouldn't be surprised if Hunter left; Hunter was good at running away from problems, especially when the problems were emotional.

"Being honest with myself…" Hunter sighed, "That is not what I had in mind by philosophical…"


	2. Whispers in the Dark

**Honestly, Chapter II**

_Whispers in the Dark_

Dustin moved slightly, his arm brushing soft skin glowing faintly in the dim light emitted through his window. He knew it'd happen again, he just didn't want to submit…yet he did. He knew where this would lead, and despite the countless arguments they'd have about emotions in the twisted web they'd created, he knew deep down Hunter would never choose. And if Hunter did choose, it didn't necessarily mean his choice would benefit Dustin…

"Not again…" Dustin groaned silently as he rubbed his forehead.

He hated the fact that he longed—even craved—the attention of his fellow ninja ranger. Yet when he had it, in that very moment after such intense, heated passion, it didn't feel right. There they were, lying in the lies they'd created for themselves; all the 'convenient truths,' the frantic excuses they'd provided, the façades they'd built up…that's what surrounded them. And every time Hunter's smooth, unblemished skin came in contact with Dustin's, it felt like some form of hot, singing, impermeable covering that was not meant to give affection.

"What's wrong?" Hunter asked, his eyes still closed.

Dustin felt the lump in his throat appear with the strength of a thousand horses. He felt as if Hunter had some sort of telepathy that just pried into his private thoughts; now, here he was confronting him at 4:35 am as they lie together. Nonetheless, Dustin gathered up his courage and replied:

"This. This is wrong."

Hunter let out a frustrated sigh.

"Look, I don't know what you want anymore, Dustin!" He sat up, looking bewildered at Dustin's ungratefulness.

"Is it really that hard for you to understand?" Dustin also sitting up.

"Dustin, I've given you everything I have! You know…it's kind of fucking tiring," he retorted angrily as he pulled the sheets up to go to the bathroom.

"Oh Hunter, shut—up! I'm not talking about the occasional mess around sessions, I'm talking about _you_."

Hunter stopped in his tracks and spun around.

"Haven't we already been through this?"

"And I **asked** you if you were going to stop fucking with my mind."

"I'm not 'fucking' with your mind, Dustin! I'm just…I'm giving you what I _thought _you wanted."

"You think I want to be your best friend with benefits? You think I want to be nothing but some emotionless _screw_?"

"I don't know _what _you want anymore, dude. You're so…so damned confusing, and clingy, and just…ugh!" He stormed into the bathroom, slamming the door, but Dustin was now furious as he followed him.

"I've already told you what I want, and don't slam _my _door in _my_ face!"

Now the argument was becoming a matter of pride and ego.

"Dustin, I don't remember everything you tell me! And don't talk to me like you're my parent!"

"Oh, yeah, that's right, turn the topic to parents. You know Hunter; I don't even know what I can still see in you."

"Neither do I! Now if you don't mind, I'd like to take a piss!"

"Then go outside," Dustin replied coldly.

Inches apart from each other, the teammates stared each other down, glowers strong enough to make most people cringe. And although their stances were meant to be intimidating, the only thing it did was cause a sense of urgent sexual tension between the two. Something that was painfully obvious.

"Get out so I can pee," Hunter ordered.

"No."

"Get. Out."

Dustin inched closer: "No."

"Dustin, I'm serious, move."

"And I'm serious: no."

Fed up with his "friend's" antics, Hunter pushed Dustin into the door aggressively, squaring up to his face even more so: "Grow. Up."

That was the last straw; Dustin pushed him off with all his might, and then swung into a punch that landed right on Hunter's shoulder. Confused, but still pissed, Hunter retaliated, jumping into a kick that sent Dustin back into the door. Dustin quickly opened the door, which served as a good shield between himself and Hunter's fist which banged loudly into its wooden build. The Crimson ninja flung the door open, chasing Dustin to his bed and flipping over it to grab Dustin's sides with his ankles. Dustin struggled to get free, which would have been easy with the friction of soft flesh, but Hunter's ninja grip proved otherwise. Any other spectator of this twisted sport would have guessed it was a form of underwear wrestling, but the competitors were anything but aroused by this situation.

Dustin pulled free from Hunter's vice grip just as he jumped off the bed into a tornado kick. Dustin jumped to the side, rolling silently and skillfully on his bedroom floor and hiding behind the edge of his bed. He began to pant slowly, noting either how out of shape he was, or how dangerous Hunter could be. Slowly, his breaths evened as he listened intently for his opponent. Nothing. Then, a faint creak. Dustin knew exactly where Hunter was; after all, it was Dustin's room. The male sprung into action, lunging onto Hunter's back, flipping him backwards onto his bed where he pinned him, their torso's meeting painfully.

"Not so tough now, huh?" Dustin breathed out.

Hunter struggled to push him off, but he knew it was no use; Earth ninjas had the best physical ability as far as strength went.

"Okay, so you pinned me. What the hell do you want?"

"I want you…to quit being…such an ass," Dustin said breathlessly.

Hunter let out a growl, "I'm not your boyfriend, Dustin; you don't get to tell me what to do."

The words stung somewhat as they brought out his innermost desires; the thoughts he dare not think in fear they'd be snatched and ridiculed; the thoughts he pushed to the back of his mind and only acknowledged in the privacy of solitude; the thoughts he wished so deeply would finally come true; the same thoughts that had given him dream after dream, only to awaken to the same harsh reality.

"Maybe I should be?" Dustin said lightly, the arrogance in his voice gone.

Hunter, too, let his guard down for a second, his struggle ceasing.

"What?"

Dustin nodded, "Maybe we should date?"

Hunter shook his head wildly, "No. What about—"

"Tori?"

"Yes. What about Tori."

Dustin sighed.

"Why do you care about her?"

Hunter looked taken aback, "Isn't she your best friend?"

"_You're _my best friend," Dustin replied in an obvious tone.

Now it was Hunter's turn to be stung by words. Dustin was right. Dustin had stuck by him even when Blake and Hunter had tried to murder him, Shane, and Tori; Dustin had always been a shoulder to lean on and a friend to call; and not once had Dustin _ever_ let Hunter down. In an overwhelming sense of attachment, emotion, and camaraderie Hunter pushed forward, meeting Dustin's searing hot lips with his own. Slowly but surely, Dustin returned the notion, which eventually led them to a temporary peace in their slumbers.

* * *

Tori awoke with the feeling that something was not quite right. Her stomach, first of all, was in knots, and her head felt like it was about to explode. However, her headache could easily have been from the repeated ring of her doorbell.

"I'm COMING," she yelled angrily, throwing her covers off.

In the upset motion, her head had throbbed indignantly at her, urging her to sit or see more of the swaying colors she was seeing now. But she ignored the warning and headed to her door, swinging it open just as the man pressed her bell once more.

"What?" she asked moodily.

"Uh; package for Tori Hanson?" he half-stated, half-asked.

"Mhm."

He eyed her suspiciously, "You don't look so good ma'am—uh—no offense, I mean."

In any other case, she would have answered, but a sudden wave of nausea came over her and she doubled over, giving the UPS man a new color for his shoes.

He looked up at her with a disgusted grimace, "I see."

He shoved the pad into her hand as he kicked Tori's gift into her bushes unceremoniously. She signed quickly, apologized, and retreated to her living room where she threw her package onto the couch. Without another thought, she headed to the bathroom, for she felt even more bile just waiting to surprise her.

"What is _wrong _with me?"


	3. Wake Me Up When September Ends

**Honestly, Chapter II****I**

_Wake Me Up When September Ends_

"Cam, I need your help."

"With what?"

"I want you to find out what's wrong with me."

"What do you mean?" Cam looked genuinely confused.

Tori shifted nervously, "I feel sick, but it's been like this for two weeks now. My head and stomach hurt, I ate _two _entrees at that Mexican place yesterday," Cam chuckled as he remembered, "And I'm only sick for the first few hours after I wake up."

Cam paused, then he pondered the idea for a few moments before walking over to his mainframe.

"You say when you first wake up you're sick with a headache and upset stomach, you eat twice as much of the strangest food, and apparently, you have mood swings like a hormonal 16 year old girl."

Tori glared at him, "What's your verdict?"

Cam was silent except for his clicking fingers on the keyboard. When a screen came up, he sighed and swiveled around in his chair to meet Tori's expectant face.

And somehow, Tori knew the answer _wasn't _what she wanted it to be.

___**The innocent can never last…**_

Dustin fumbled with the crimson and navy streamers as Shane tripped over the roll of them on the ground.

"Nice, dude," Dustin mocked as his ladder shook threateningly.

"Hey, you know, I don't even know why _we _got stuck with party decorations. Tori's the one in love with Blake."

Dustin fought back a laugh as he slammed a tack into the wall. In the few weeks that had passed since his heart to fist with Hunter, he'd somehow become more accepting to the idea that Hunter would need time to register his feelings for each ranger. And it put Dustin at ease, because he and Hunter spent more and more time together, though they continuously banned their emotions to privacy. Dustin had accepted his life for the moment, and was satisfied with at least having Hunter for that time. Tori seemed a little affected by this as she was more snappy than usual, and seemed honestly agitated the more she saw Hunter and Dustin together. That caused a problem all on its own, but it was much easier to deal with while happy than it was while angry.

"What was that look for?"

Dustin shook his head, "Nothing, nothing; hey, can you hand me that tape over there?"

Shane's eyes lingered a few more moments before he complied with the yellow ranger's wishes. Dustin had been acting even more strange than usual. Granted, they had all been a little edgy about being together one last time before Blake's factory tour started again and the new semester at the Thunder Academy started. Then it would just be himself, Dustin, Tori, and Cam again. He hated to say it, but he was really going to miss the thunder heads. Of course they were friends and all, but Shane couldn't help but feel a little rejected from Dustin's life ever since Hunter came on to the scene. Shane had never had a problem with Blake and Tori, they were too inseparable to even attempt to get one of them alone. But Dustin…well, Dustin had been Shane's best friend since he could remember, and when he was too busy to hang out because he was with Hunter…well, it made Shane feel like he should have been a green ranger after all.

"Lookin' great guys," Tori commented as she reentered her house. She had been setting up the drinks and such in her backyard while the boys struggled with decorations.

"Tori, how the hell am I supposed to do this? Couldn't you have called up one of your little fairy guys to decorate?" Shane ranted.

Tori rolled her eyes as she laughed, "This is a party for two straight guys, Shane, not for girls."

Dustin forced a nervous laugh. Somehow, he now felt as if Shane _and _Tori knew.

"Well, I gotta get going guys, I gotta meet up with my parents before they leave for the beach," Dustin excused himself.

"Oh, tell your mom not to forget to write down her recipe for that spinach and mushroom casserole. My mom has been _grilling _me for it," Shane hollered.

"Sure thing dude."

No sooner than he had left, Tori turned to Shane; "Is it just me, or has he been acting really strange?"

Shane nodded, "Yeah, if you consider strange being him and Hunter being practically attached at the hip."

"My thoughts exactly…" Tori trailed off.

_**[Becoming who we are…**_

Blake had a strange feeling. After everything Hunter had just told him, he wasn't angry. He looked back at his adoptive brother, and for once, the blond hair and blue eyes he saw didn't make him jealous in the least bit . He couldn't count how many times he'd come so close to hating his brother for being graced with looks at least 80 of girls would go crazy for, yet he brooded over nothing. That was probably why Blake wasn't angry with Hunter. Blake had always been able to let go of the past and live in the present, whereas Hunter had to analyze the past so that he could figure out the future; forget about the present. And now, here he was, confiding in his little brother because he couldn't choose.

"Hunter…this is…it's crazy."

"I know dude…I know. I just…I'm sorry about Tori."

Blake laughed, "Dude, Tori and I have been over since like, five months ago."

"Four," Hunter corrected, then hurried into another sentence, "Look, I just, I don't know who to hurt. I've hurt them both so much in the past and…I don't know if I can do it again."

Blake sighed. He knew what Hunter meant, but at the same time, he would have to choose. He couldn't continue to string them both along.

"Well you say Dustin already knows about Tori?"

"Yeah."

"Well, if he already knows, then he shouldn't be too surprised if you choose Tori; otherwise, you'd have to tell Tori everything. Not to mention, how are you gonna tell the others about Dustin? Are you really ready to confront everyone about your…" Blake stopped and used the ever-helpful air quotes, "Tendencies?"

Hunter stood up, glancing around the windy, empty moto track. The fire-colored leaves were viciously attacking the hills, and every once in a while, they'd sabotage Blake and himself like hungry flies. "Then what do I do about Dustin? He's my best friend, Blake."

"Sounds to me like he's a little more than that."

Hunter shot him a glare.

"Look, all I'm saying is that if you expect to have a normal friendship with Dustin after all this is said and done, you're setting yourself up for a big disappointment. He's obviously in love with you or something, dude."

Hunter knew that was coming. And he knew it was true. And no matter how he tried to struggle with his own emotions, he knew the same was true for himself. He was in love with the goof, that much was true.

"Then maybe I should just tell Tori."

"You really think that's the best decision?"

Hunter turned to Blake, this time full of confidence; "If Dustin really _is _in love with me, he's got more to offer than Tori does. He's also got more to lose. Tori and I…we have this connection, but Dustin and I…I mean, he was willing to _fight me _to knock some sense into me. "

Blake looked convinced, "Either way, I got your back bro, you know that."

"Thanks bro…"

"Hey, there you two are!"

Blake and Hunter looked toward the voice. Sure enough, Marah and Kapri were making their way up the hill, leaves trailing them in an attempt to get lodged in their hair.

"Tori sent us to get you and she said you might be here," Marah said, her usual airy smile slapped on her face.

Blake nodded, "Yep, we were just getting caught up. You ready man?"

Hunter looked at him and nodded with a grin, "I'm ready."

Kapri clapped several times, "Yay! Let's go party!"

_**[Like we did when spring began…**_

"So, you gonna tell him?" Cam asked.

Cam wasn't dumb. He knew she had grown rather attached to Hunter while Blake was test-touring. Five months all alone? Still trying to be committed to Blake while he was away? She'd come crying to him the night she finally decided to end things with him. She'd asked him why it was so hard. Why love never worked the way people wanted it to. Cam hadn't really known then, but he'd known the unfairness of love. He had known the unrequited cold shoulder it could give him. Oh he knew…Tori had taught him that all too well. And now, after she had filled in the gaps, told Cam how she and Hunter had been together for almost four months, he knew she loved him. He just needed to hear the confirmation.

Tori took a deep breath, unknowingly patting her stomach; "I think so."

Cam smiled at her, squeezing her hand, "I'm sure he'll understand."

"You think so?"

"He loves you Tori, of course he will."

"How do you know?"

"How could he _not _love you?"

She laughed, pushing Cam away, "You are such a hopeless romantic."

Cam shrugged as he began a reply, only to have Marah and Kapri's entrance ruin it.

"They're here! Everybody get in position!" Kapri announced, ushering Shane back into the house.

"Wait a minute, you mean they didn't know we were throwing a party?" he asked, dumbfounded.

"I told them it was a small get-together," Tori shrugged.

She looked around the room. Everyone was there…Kelly, Sensei Amino as well as Sensei Watanabe, Marah, Kapri, Shane, and Cam. Someone was missing.

"Dustin! Where's Dustin?" Tori remembered, moving from her hiding place.

"Probably still with his parents. Want me to stall Blake and Hunter?" Shane asked.

"If you could," Tori replied, grabbing her house phone.

Seconds later she heard the ringing of his cell phone. "Pick up, pick up, pick up," she urged.

"Hello?"

"Dustin! It's me Tori, where are—"

"Hel-lo?"

"Dustin! Can you hear me?"

"I can't hear you, can you speak up?"

"Dustin!"

"Agh. Alright dude, stop screaming at my voicemail and leave me a message."

Tori glared, slamming her phone down on the counter. She really needed to remember his voicemail.

"What's wrong?" Cam asked.

"Voicemail."

"Hey, am I too late?" Dustin asked, coming through the back door.

"Ugh, there you are! Hurry up, Shane's stalling."

Dustin followed Tori to a discreet hiding position (behind her couch) and waited. The blinds were all closed so virtually no light was let in, creating a suspiciously dark setting.

Seconds later, they heard the door open and Blake's voice.

"Ah, no," he laughed.

"SURPRISE!" came a chorus of cheers.

The thunder brothers laughed, coming towards the familiar faces.

"You really didn't have to do all this, Tor," Blake said, giving her a welcoming hug.

"I was in a 'joyous' little mood, so I figured why not?"

Hunter watched them, mainly Tori. Lately they'd been getting even more serious, having silences where the words "I love you" felt so right to say…yet silence remained. They'd spend long hours on the phone, or in each others' beds lying peacefully, no sound interrupting them. Hunter wondered why he was forced to give this all up, why love could be so cruel and ambiguous.

"Hunter," Tori said in greeting, hugging him tightly, more so than needed.

"The house looks great Tori, thanks a lot," he distracted himself.

She smiled back in thanks.

"So, should we go out back?" Kelly suggested, pointing to the deck and backyard that eventually led to the beach.

"Definitely, let me put on some music," Tori answered, turning toward the stairs; she paused, "Hunter, will you help me pick out some music?"

Hunter eyed Blake warily, but after a nod, he followed, hoping Tori saw nothing.

The walk up the stairs was silent before Hunter tried breaking the ice, "How'd you get everyone to stay quiet about this?"

"I didn't tell anyone until yesterday," she laughed.

Hunter nodded, chuckling slightly.

"So, how's your day been so far? I didn't get to say goodbye to you this morning."

"Yeah, I…I went riding this morning with Dustin."

"Oh."

"Yeah…sorry, I wanted to wake you but you looked so peaceful," he whispered as they reached the top of the stairs. Their eyes met and he pushed a strand of wavy blonde hair from her face.

She smiled at the delicate motion and stepped forward some, "You can wake me anytime; it's always a good day when you're the first thing I see."

Hunter wanted so badly to turn away from her earnest eyes. He felt horrible. Worse than horrible. How would he be able to break her heart? He stopped fighting himself and replied to her.

"You're just so…so…so _something _I can't even describe while you're sleeping."

She blushed as she moved away towards her room, going to her computer to create a quick playlist.

"I actually already had a partially ready playlist but…I wanted your opinion."

"I'm sure whatever you have picked out is fine."

She looked at him, her eyes searching his before she began speaking again.

"Hunter…I'm not sure how to say this. You've changed my life in so many ways and you were there for me in a way that no one else could be when I need it most. It meant so much to me that you cleaned up what your brother had left, and I guess I just couldn't help but fall for you."

While she paused, he looked away, the shame building in him.

"And every moment I'm with you I can't process the situation. In any other case, I think before I act or speak, but when I'm with you, my body goes on autopilot and I just…I'm free."

For a moment, the look on her face was that of complete bliss, then she continued.

"I guess what I'm trying to say is…well…"

"Hey! Are you guys recording an album or something? Let's go!" Shane shouted, coming up the stairs and heading for her room.

Quickly, Tori released Hunter's hand and grabbed her iPod, meeting Shane at her doorway.

"Sorry, I had to add the playlist to my iPod," she lied, hurrying down the stairs. She was so close to telling him. So unbearably close.

Shane looked from Tori's retreating form to Tori; "…You two?"

Hunter was at a loss for words.

"Holy shit…"

"Shane…you have to be quiet about this. I mean it. Please."

He nodded absently and slowly, "And all this time I thought she was upset Dustin was spending time with you because she missed Dustin…she actually wanted _you_."

Hunter shook his head and began to exit the room, "Yeah, crazy huh? We should go."

Just as fast as Tori, Hunter fled the scene in a crimson-like blur.

_**[Summer has come and past…**_

The evening was going without a hitch; people were laughing, dancing, singing, telling stories; fun had consumed them all. All except Hunter, who was doing a great job of hiding his internal war. On more than one occasion, he'd left the party, gone inside, and returned with his hair looking somewhat damp. Blake knew what this was. It was his brother doing something he hadn't seen him do since his incident with the Gem of Souls. He was holding his head underwater for a while, blocking out all other noises to hear his own thoughts.

"You ready to tell Tori?" Blake asked long after dark.

Kelly had already left, as well as Sensei Amino and Watanabe. Marah had been on the phone for quite some time and could occasionally be heard yelling at her boyfriend…or whatever he was now. Kapri seemed to be immersed in a serious conversation with Cam while Shane, Dustin, and Tori were finally conversing together for the first time in a while.

"I think so," Hunter replied breathlessly. He almost appeared to be shaking.

"Good luck, bro," Blake said as he joined the three wind ninjas' conversation.

"Hey…Tor, can I talk to you for a minute?" Hunter asked, swallowing the last of his drink. Hopefully the whiskey would do something for his nerves.

"Sure."

He lead her away from the party, out onto the beach walkway.

"I…I need to tell you something, but I'm not sure how to begin," he said, noting how much he sounded like her.

"Wait…please, before you do, let me finish what I was saying earlier." Her plans since then had changed dramatically and though it _killed _her, she was determined.

"Alright…"

"Like I was saying earlier…I can't really describe how you make me feel…but…I don't think I've ever had emotions this strong for anyone."

A slight pause allowed them to hear the crashing of the waves as high tide came in.

"But…I can't help feeling it's not the time to commit," she said.

Hunter blinked. Was she really doing this?

"What do you mean?" he asked, trying to hide the sudden stroke of hope in his voice.

"I…I love you Hunter…but you have a life away from here, just like Blake. And I love teaching as much as you do, and I can't ask you to stay here with me when your calling is elsewhere."

Hunter felt his vision become obstructed by some…strange fluid…then he realized what it was. Water. Or more accurately; teardrops. He blinked them away as he embraced her for probably the last time; "I love you too Tori. And maybe someday we can make this work. Someday…"

"What did you want to tell me?" she asked him as they stayed silent.

"Nothing...it was nothing..." he said, trying his best not to choke on the tears he refused to let fall.

He squeezed her tighter as if she were his grip on reality or his one source of peace. And they stayed like that for a while, lost in time and space in each others' warm embrace. When they parted, they headed back to the party as friends. And though Tori swore to herself she would never tell Hunter, letting him go was the hardest decision she'd ever made. And probably the most wrong. For in her stomach, in her actual body, she felt his blood coursing in what they'd created. What they'd created _together_. It made her feel as though a part of him was in her. Yet sadly, she knew that after tomorrow…she would never feel it again. 


	4. Retrace

Honestly Chapter IV

_Save Tonight_

Dustin was nervous, and he knew the whiskey burning in his stomach must've been keeping the butterflies there company. He had no idea when he'd ever felt so nervous. He was positive, one-hundred percent sure that Hunter had gone of with Tori to tell her he was choosing her. And although Dustin knew this would happen, he liked to think they had just a bit more time than what they currently had.

He sighed, taking another shooter with Marah and laughed as the burn of his friend Jim Beam scorched his throat. Hopefully, Jimmy would get him through this night just fine.

"Let's dance!" Marah called over the music, pulling Dustin out in to the middle of the yard that had been reserved as a dance floor.

Dustin moved to the music, hoping he could lose the nervousness and the doubt that was clouding his body. Why couldn't he just have been attracted to Marah? She was nice enough, she'd shown an actual attraction him before, not to mention she seemed to be single after her phone conversation was heard by all occupants of the party, and although she had used him…Hunter had done the same, had he not? So why not be attracted to her? Maybe tonight he'd change that. Maybe he could force himself into liking people whose names weren't Hunter.

"Room for one more?" Tori asked as she squeezed in, shaking next to Marah.

Dustin lifted an eyebrow. If Tori was back…that meant…

"Hey, where's Hunter?"

Tori looked over her shoulder at Dustin, "Oh, he went inside. Said something about being hungry. You know there's food in there right?"

Dustin rubbed his stomach with a genuine smile, "Tor, you really are a savior."

Without another word, he left the yard to meet his crimson comrade inside.

"Hunter?"

Silence greeted his ears. Damn.

"Yo, Hunter, you in here?" he asked a little more relaxed.

"Dustin?"

"There you are! What'cha eatin?"

"Eh…nothing, I thought I was hungry, but I kinda lost my appetite," he answered, grabbing an empty red cup to join the others outside.

"Hang on, let me grab some food and I'll head back out with you."

Hunter agreed, standing on the side as his secret infatuation prepared an extremely unhealthy looking hotdog.

"Alright. _Now _we can go."

So they headed out, Dustin stuffing his mouth full of food so that he didn't feel tempted to ask Hunter what happened with him and Tori. He kept his eyes averted to Shane and Cam as he joined them, then poured himself a mixed drink and stood around, laughing, eating, and drinking as Hunter went away to talk to Blake. Too bad he was being so serious. He looked like someone had just given him a ransom phone call.

"Hey, what's with blondie?" Marah asked as she popped a potato chip in her glossy mouth, taking a breath from dancing.

"No idea. He and Tori gone for a while, huh?" Shane pointed out.

Dustin's eyes narrowed on him, and he had a feeling Shane had somehow found out. He looked over at Cam, who also had the same knowing expression. How the hell did they all know?

About a half an hour later, Hunter was becoming more and more jubilant; either because he genuinely wanted to have a good time, or because he was so filled up on various liquors and whiskeys that he had fooled himself into being happier than anyone.

"You know Cam," he was saying, a nonsensical smile slapped on his face, "You're not so bad when you loosen up."

Shane laughed hysterically, no doubt starting to be put under something else's influence.

"He's right Cam, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you were Cyber Cam."

Cam rolled his eyes, unable to fight the grin that came to his face, "You guys never cease to amaze me with your constant doubt of my ability to have fun. I _am _human, guys."

Shane shrugged, but Kapri beat him to the sentence, "Coulda fooled us."

Everyone laughed, and Hunter risked a glance over at Dustin, who was dancing with Blake and Tori. He sighed inwardly. He knew he had to tell Dustin tonight, even Blake said so. They'd talked about it for at least 15 minutes, coming out to the same conclusion each time; Dustin had to know.

Cam had a nice retort for Kapri, which caused everyone but Hunter to erupt in laughter.

"Hey Dus-Dustin-can I talk to you man?" he asked, his voice ragged with fatigue and a bit of hidden desire.

Dustin turned his attention to Hunter, the smile still plastered on his face from the dry joke Cam had just finished.

"Yeah, sure dude," he replied, drinking from his red Silo brand cup.

Hunter swallowed several times as he walked away towards Tori's front yard.

"What's up, Hunter?" Dustin asked, setting his cup on a porch ledge.

Hunter swallowed again. His mouth felt like an arid wasteland, or like he'd just swallowed a gallon of peanut butter.

"I-I've got something I' been wantin' to tell you for awhile," he slurred out.

_[Not now]_ he thought to himself, not wanting the alcohol to hit him so hard.

"Sure," Dustin said, still unaffected by his friend's strange behavior.

Clearing his throat, Hunter tried again, "I' been thinkin'n'all, ya know, bout leavin' and not seein' people for a long time. So Blake thought it'd be a good idea for me to say so tonight."

_[That doesn't sound right]_ Hunter corrected himself in his head. He saw Dustin look at him somewhat funny.

"Hunter, you don't look like you're feeling too good," Dustin spoke quietly, taking a step closer.

"No, no, I'm fine. I'm fine. I ju—"I just wanna tell you something" he said again.

"So tell me, Hunter," Dustin urged, his nonchalant attitude substituted for concern.

"I'm gettin' there, I'm gettin'' there," Hunter answered, waving his hand at Dustin in a dismissing fashion.

He took a deep breath, swayed a bit, and then cleared his throat.

"I like you."

Dustin rolled his eyes, "Hunter, shut up, that's not funny. We've already talked about this, remember?"

Hunter took a wavy step forward, "N-no, really, I do."

"No, you don't, you're drunk."

"So?"

"_So_, I'm not going to listen to you while there are a bunch of drinks talking for you. We both agreed we wouldn't get our emotions involved" Dustin said wisely, attempting to pull Hunter into the house.

"Nooooooooo," Hunter groaned, pulling away and almost falling on the dew-covered lawn, "Listen to me."

"NO!" Dustin shouted angrily, "You can't like me. It doesn't happen that way, okay?"

Hunter looked confused, "W-what?"

Dustin turned his back to Hunter, pacing up the porch, then grabbing his cup and downing the contents.

"You wanna know why, Hunter? I'll tell you why—"because best friends don't sleep with each other and pretend it never happened. Best friends don't ignore each others feelings and continue to abuse them! And mostly, Hunter, Best friends don't fall in love with each other! Especially when they're guys like you and me!"

Hunter blinked a few times, then he hiccupped.

"You-love me?"

Dustin's face contorted into a look of frustration, almost a plea. In a flash of rage, he threw the small red cup towards Hunter.

"Yes! Okay?! Yes! I fucking love you, you goddamned idiot!" he yelled,

Hunter swallowed a few times, his sobriety almost within his grasp.

"I-I never didn't know," he stammered.

Dustin shook his head, the situation all too incredulous for him...

"You're so damned drunk," he muttered, "And I just spilled my feelings out to you; but it won't matter because you won't even remember tomorrow morning."

"N-no, I'll remember, I promise," Hunter said, giving a haphazard smile.

He swayed a bit, his eyes bulged a little, and then he finally mumbled out "Oh shit" before whatever was in his stomach came tumbling out.

"Hunter!"

Dustin ran forwards, jumping over the few steps that led to the ground that Hunter had substituted for a toilet.

"Sorry," Hunter muttered, trying to straighten up, only to wretched once more with pain as he continued to empty his stomach.

"Shit…" Dustin whispered to himself, trying to think of something to do. "Uh…ah…alright. Hunter—_Hunter_," he yelled, getting the boy's attention, "Stay _right here_, okay? Do – not – move."

"Uh huh."

Dustin ran off, into the dark house, through the clean living room, and into the cool kitchen, the only sound being that of the humming refrigerator.

He fumbled for a large cup, then ran some cold water into it, filling it to the brim. He grabbed a hotdog bun, and charged back outside. No Hunter.

"_Fuck_!" the brunet male cursed, looking around for the puking ranger.

He heard a rustle in the bushes on the right side of the house and quickly jogged over to find Hunter bent over, still wrecked.

"Here, drink this!"

Hunter looked up, glanced at the cup, and roared, "_I don't need water!_I'm not drunk, I'm – I'm-" once more he cut himself off the let the vomit up.

Dustin thought quickly. He sprinted over to grab his little red cup, filled it up half-way with water, and went back to Hunter.

"C'mon Hunter," he said forcefully, trying his best to imitate a drunken frat, "Take your shot! Quit duckin out, just take the damned shot!"

Hunter's glazed eyes lifted to the red cup and he grinned lopsided, "That's what I'm t-talkin' 'bout."

He greedily snatched the silo cup and drank from it easily, unaware he was drinking water and not a shot.

"There you go," Dustin said under his breath, happy that his trick worked. If only he could keep Hunter from the others…

"More," Hunter gasped as he looked around. He looked unfocused for a moment more before he began trying to puke again, but nothing came out.

"Shit…dry-heaving…" Dustin quickly grabbed the silo cup and filled it with water while Hunter was busy _trying _to get the alcohol out of his body.

"Here, take another dude. One more shot!"

Hunter complied, once more grabbing the plastic little cup and downing its contents, unaware that it was indeed full this time and that no shot would be so large.

"Good, good," said Dustin, then he held out the hotdog bun, "Hungry?"

Hunter eyed the bun suspiciously before Dustin had no choice but to practically shove it down Hunter's slightly open mouth.

"Eat the damned bread, Hunter!" he growled, wrestling with the drunken male.

"I'm not h-hungry!" he hiccupped.

But as soon as he opened his mouth, Dustin won, finally getting a good portion of the bread there.

Hunter chewed it loathingly, swallowing it only when he was ready. No soon as he stopped chewing did it come right back up in a plasmatic form.

"Lovely…" Dustin groaned, giving him more water.

A good 15 minutes later, Dustin was quite confident Hunter was not going to be puking anymore. Unfortunately, his tight-fitting red and grey shirt was now stained with remnants of Hunter's daily meals and dribbles of water. He'd also managed to get blotches of substances Dustin didn't even want to acknowledge on the legs of his once nice jeans.

"C'mon Hunter…can you stand?"

He nodded, "P-please," he panted, "N-no more…I don't wanna…"

Dustin gave him a pitied look before scooping up his arm and trying to take him into the house.

"I don't wanna," he kept repeating, trying to shake Dustin's grip, "No more."

"I'm not making you throw up, Hunter, I promise. How about a shower? Get you clean?"

"I don – don't ne-eed w-water," he spluttered.

Dustin didn't acknowledge him as he pulled him up the stairs. He was so happy no one from the party had come looking for them. Maybe they'd forgotten about them, or maybe Blake knew what Hunter was going to do and he was distracting the others. Either way, he was grateful.

Dustin got Hunter inside where he took off the ninja's shoes and emptied his pockets; luckily, his car keys were in there, which he definitely wouldn't be needing any time soon – his cell phone and wallet were also contents of his pockets.

"Alright dude…can you make it up the stairs with me?" he looked over at Hunter, who was beginning to doze off.

"Hunter! _Hunter_!"

He groaned and grunted his reply, not exactly content with being awaken.

"I need you to walk for me man. C'mon."

Hunter tried to move his legs, but nothing was happening. He shook his head feebly, then let out a strange laugh, "H-I…khant…"

Dustin furrowed his eyebrows, then deciphered the sentence; "You _can_, Hunter, just work with me."

Again, the crimson ranger tried lifting his leg, but nothing happened. Finally, a twitch in his foot, and a step up.

"Good! C'mon, let's keep going."

After an agonizing ten minutes of trying to talk Hunter through walking up stairs, he finally made it to the top flight and into the bathroom.

"Alright…I'm gonna need you to just lay down in the tub, okay?"

Hunter smiled like a little child, "Mhm."

Dustin slowly let him go and Hunter plopped down in the top dangerously hard.

"Jesus, dude, not like that!"

But Hunter looked content at finally being still.

"Now comes the hard part," Dustin sighed to himself as he began to remove Hunter's necklace, followed by trying to pull off his shirt.

"Wh-what're yah…why're you doin that?"

"I'm _trying _to get you clean," Dustin growled through gritted teeth. He finally managed to get the dampened shirt from his friend and threw it over near the door.

"It's kindah khold."

"Just wait a minute, I'll turn on the warm water," Dustin assured him, now trying to unbutton the jeans. Just his luck, there was no zipper, but a series of buttons.

"H-hey! They alwayz said you'd t-triie ta get in miie pahnts."

Dustin gave him a disgusted look and continued. He didn't even want to know what Hunter was talking about, he just wanted to hurry up and get this over with.

Finally, he was done with the buttons and he began to pull the legs of the pants to get them off, which proved harder than it sounded. Hunter was _not _willing to help, and several times he kicked.

"Ugh! _Hunter! Stay – still_!"

Hunter laughed subtly as Dustin finally removed the pants. Now he only need to get off his socks and boxers. He knew this was _not _going to be easy.

He started with the socks, maybe to help Hunter forget that he'd just taken off his pants; he was sure that if he went for the boxers now, Hunter would only think Dustin was trying something else…

The socks were easy enough to remove. Afterwards, he hazardously began to pull down the waist band of Hunter's boxers, which Hunter seemed to think was extremely amusing.

"I don' theenk this iz rilly tha tahyme," Hunter slurred, laughing again.

Dustin shook his head but couldn't help grinning somewhat as he threw the boxers over near the rest of Hunter's ruined clothes.

"Your mind and your body really need to learn to agree, then," Dustin said, laughing at Hunter's current state.

Hunter looked at himself and laughed too, though he was unsure of what. And although the situation was not ideal, Dustin was just glad that Hunter was not angry, because he definitely was about to be once the water turned on.

All caution flowing through him, Dustin eased the water on, making sure it was warm as possible. The water was louder than he'd expected and prayed to whatever lie above that the others didn't come in and see this.

"Hunter…I need you pick your head up," Dustin said, trying to lean Hunter up in the huge tub.

"Uh-huh…"

"Hunter! C'mon man, we're almost done; just pick your head up."

The water was rising faster now; the back of Hunter's head was already submerged in water. No wonder he wasn't paying attention; his ears were already under the warm water. Without another thought occupying his mind, Dustin snatched Hunter's head up and tried to prop him on the slippery angle of the tub.

"Hunter! I need you to sit up, okay?"

The smell of vomit was overcoming the bathroom, and Dustin hurriedly grabbed the only soap visible; some sports shower gel for women.

"N-no! That's fur guuuurls," Hunter almost screeched. Dustin rolled his eyes and bit his tongue. Maybe Tori's dad had something…

"Do _not _move, Hunter. Please."

With that, he ninja streaked through the rest of the house until he arrived in Tori's parent's bathroom. A red container of Old Spice shower gel was clearly visible among Mrs. Hanson's Dove and Olive of Olay products. He grabbed and dodged his way back to the guest bath. Luckily, Hunter was sitting there above the translucent water, singing parts of some random song that was now playing outside.

"And thu daawn kums tuh-morroow," he groaned. Dustin winced at the sound and incorrectness of the lyrics.

However, he took this moment to his advantage as he began to wash Hunter…in so many ways, this whole situation was beyond wrong…

—_**Retrace—**_

Hunter's head was splitting in two, he knew it. He half expected to open his eyes and find Lothor and his goons laughing at him while he was chained to some torture bed. He slowly moved his hands, and realized they weren't bound. He wanted to risk opening his eyes, just to get a glance of where he was. He balled his hands into fists and squinted into the overly-bright room. It was definitely a place he did not recognize, and the blinding light made his head throb in protest. Quickly he shut his eyes again.

_[Where am I?]___he wondered to himself.

"Hunter?"

He wanted to open his eyes to the soft voice but he'd already learned his lesson from that.

"Who—where am I?"

"It's me, Dustin. We're at Tori's…you had a pretty bad night last night, dude."

Hunter tried to sit up, but he felt his sore muscles scream at him for the stupid idea.

"What…what happened?"

Dustin sighed, "Heh…well, it's more like what _didn't_ happen."

"That bad, huh?"

"Well…luckily, none of the others know. I told Tori you didn't think it was a good idea to drive home and told her you and I would crash here."

Hunter felt a pang of emotion. Had last night really happen? Did Tori end it with him? He had fleeting images of the beach, of her teary eyes, of an everlasting embrace. Then laughing with the others, interrupted by a small red cup flying at his face and yelling someone, then…small glimpses of a pristine white bathroom and a tub…

"Oh God…what happened?"

Dustin took another deep breath and gripped Hunter's hand slightly, to which Hunter flinched a bit; "I…I told you how I feel."

Hunter didn't reply, so Dustin added quickly, "I didn't want to. I mean I did, but I never wanted to push anything on you. You were insistent really." His voice died down and he got quiet, "You were emotional."

Hunter's eyes fluttered open. "What did I say?"

Dustin looked at Hunter's worried face; "Don't worry, you didn't say anything bad. You just said that you liked me, that was all."

"And what did you say?"

"I…" Dustin voice cracked, put he pushed on, "I said I…I."

"You said you loved me, didn't you?"

Dustin was quiet, but he nodded, even though his eyes were glued to the hard wood floor he was kneeling on.

Hunter caught several emotions in his throat at once and the images all burst back to him; all the way up until Dustin's heart-wrenching confession.

"I chose you, Dustin."

Dustin's head whipped up, the fresh sparkles of water in his eyes clearly visible to Hunter.

"I…I wanted to tell Tori about you and me…because I realized how much I care about you—how much I've hurt you already. And I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

This couldn't be Hunter? Dustin was sure he must've still been drunk; there was no possible way _Hunter Bradley_ was showing emotion. Not while sober.

"It's okay," Dustin managed.

"It's not…and I'm sorry, because I just…I don't know how to handle it."

"Handle what?" Dustin asked, now sincerely confused.

Hunter's gravelly voice came out, and words formed, but they found his ears with catastrophic force. There was no way Hunter had just said what he thought he said. Maybe Dustin's eardrums had exploded and he hadn't noticed, maybe Hunter's lips moved in a completely different way than what his voice emitted and Dustin didn't hear correctly. There was no way in hell Hunter had just confessed his feelings. No way…

"Dustin?"

"Huh?"

"I mean it…I really _do _love you too…and I hate that it's taken so long to see that."


	5. Thunder

**Honestly, Chapter V**

_Thunder_

"No, no, no, it's _D_, A/D, G/D, _then _Bm/D, A/D."

Hunter's fingers felt as if they were on fire and Dustin's impatience wasn't helping his moral. Hunter hadn't touched this cursed instrument in almost 5 months, and yet, here he was, blistering his fingers so that he could perform in some useless talent show at some Emo-kid club.

"Dustin, can we maybe take a break, dude?"

Dustin stopped tuning his guitar for the 7th time that day and turned towards Hunter, "If we take a break now, we won't have time to practice before the show!"

"Look, as much as I love this song, I can't stand to hear it again right now. I need a break."

Dustin swatted his hand towards Hunter, "Yeah, yeah, whatever."

The former Crimson ranger frowned at his companion's attitude. Normally the weeks that Hunter was home from the Thunder Academy were centered on them spending time together, going to movies, going swimming – things they _both _found fun. They'd endured a rather grueling 6 month relationship patched with ups and downs – more ups than anything else – and yet it seemed that they were both getting more on edge. It seemed the schedule had begun to take its toll on the men, for it was always the same; one month away from each other, complete with everyday phone calls or IM sessions; then, a week together, and another month away. Both knew they had it pretty good, and neither could really complain about the money they were making.

Without fueling his boyfriend's frustration even further, Hunter carelessly laid his guitar on the ground and quickly exited the room, desperately trying to get some fresh air. He couldn't stand seeing Dustin like that. When he'd volunteered to help Dustin in the Battle of the Bands, he had no idea Dustin would get so in to it. He had no idea he'd take it so seriously. Besides, what did Dustin need the money for? He had quarters at the Wind Ninja Academy, as well as his parents' more than luxurious suburban house. So why did he need the money?

"Hey…you okay?"

Hunter turned around to see Cam, clad in green as usual and fixing him with a worried look.

"Fine," Hunter replied curtly, looking at his red fingertips laced with string imprints.

"You and Dustin seem pretty tense lately; is something wr—"

"I said I'm fine."

Cam furrowed his eyebrows. He was used to this kind of treatment from Hunter; no one ever knew how Hunter would react and he was the most unstable of the rangers in his emotions – other than Dustin, of course – which had slowly, overtime, helped Cam get used to the arrogance, moodiness, and overall insanity of Hunter.

"Well I'm not only asking about you, Hunter; I'm talking about Dustin too. I do have to work with him you know."

Hunter glared over at Cam, trying to analyze the situation.

"Why do I have to have something to do with how Dustin's been acting? I barely ever see him."

"Exactly; yet when you come back from the Thunder Academy, you always go straight to him. I was just wondering if that was maybe why he was so edgy lately."

"Because I visit him when I come back on break?"

"You don't visit anyone else."

"Who am I supposed to visit? Blake? Yeah, because I can afford to fly out to wherever he's touring every week of every month. Get real Cam."

"Why not visit Tori?"

Hunter slowly turned back to Cam and his smug response, his eyes ablaze with Fury; "What's that supposed to mean?"

Cam didn't back down from the fierce gaze he was receiving from Hunter; "You have no idea what you've put her through, Hunter."

It happened before Hunter could even register it. With all his ninja training, he could not control the fist that furiously impacted with Cam's mouth.

"How fucking _dare _you, Cam? You have _no _idea what you're even talking about you nosy little—"

"Hey! What the hell are you doing, Hunter?!" Dustin shouted from the top of the concrete stairs that led to the building they'd been practicing in.

Dustin's amber eyes flickered from Cam's sprawled form doctoring his lip, to Hunter, standing ominously over the fallen green ranger with his fists balled.

Hunter only panted; he had no answer ready for Dustin. He couldn't face him, Dustin wouldn't understand. He never would. So like he'd done from all his emotional problems, Hunter walked away before disappearing in a crimson flash jumping around the city until it met the horizon.

What did Cam know anyway? He was just jealous he couldn't get in Tori's pants first, that was all. Hunter wasn't dumb; he'd seen the looks Cam had given Tori – nonetheless, Hunter had also seen the looks Cam had sent towards him as well. Hunter didn't hate Cam; that was a common misconception. However, Hunter didn't particularly like Cam, either, so it was more like a mutual dislike towards each other. Maybe Cam was intent on ruining Hunter's relationship with both Tori _and _Dustin to try and get Hunter for himself?

Hunter shook his head, looking out over the misty sea from the rocky cliff. He couldn't get a grasp on his emotions. He really cared for Dustin – even loved him; but even the Thunder Ranger couldn't dismiss the fact that they had been getting frequently more hostile towards each other. He knew Dustin wasn't only frustrated because Hunter couldn't remember a simple chord progression; he knew it had more to do with the fact that they'd been slowly giving in on their relationship…and that made him sick to his stomach. Not to mention, he knew he wouldn't be staying at the Thunder Academy much longer anyway. Sensei Amino had already spoken to him about his upcoming task, and though he dreaded it and wanted to tell Dustin so badly…he knew even more that telling him would only complicate things.

Soft specks of water shook Hunter from his pensiveness as he squinted to the overcast horizon. Large clouds were rolling in and Hunter thought it the perfect scene for him to have quite possibly the worst week of his life. He absently kicked a stone as he headed back to his apartment, fully aware Dustin would eventually find him there.

* * *

"What did you say to him?!" Dustin demanded once more.

Cam glowered at Dustin as he continued to rub ice on his swollen lip, "Yeah, because Hunter's always needed a reason to go off…"

"Oh you know what Cam – cut the sarcastic bullshit! I'm so _not _in the mood for your little smartass replies."

"Fine, Dustin; you wanna know _why _Hunter's so…pissy all the sudden? I'll tell you why; because he destroyed Tori and he knows it. It was worse than blasting her or smashing her around with his Zord – he broke her heart and now _I'm _left to clean up. And you know what Dustin? I'm tired of having to clean up after some undeserving moto-cross jock screws her over. Me. Not you, not Blake, and it sure as hell isn't Hunter."

Dustin tried to reply but his mouth suddenly felt hot and dry like he'd been eating a badly prepared cake.

"You don't know what you're talking about, Cam."

"Really? Then explain to me why no one sees Tori outside of the academy? Explain to me why she hardly eats, she _never _surfs anymore, and she barely gets enough sleep. Do you know why? Because she says the meals are too big without Hunter eating with her; the beach makes her think of the most intimate sex she's 'ever had,' though Hunter probably thought of it as some meaningless romp; and lastly, she can't sleep because her bed is too empty and her dreams are always about Hunter coming back to her and she only awakes to know he's _not _there, he's probably off playing video games with _you_."

Cam's face was now dangerously close to exploding judging by the color and he'd long given up trying to heal his fat lip. In his eyes were something very reminiscent of tears and suddenly, Dustin made the connection.

"You love her, don't you?"

"What?"

"You. You're in love with Tori."

"That's ridiculous Dustin," Cam dismissed, fixing his askew glasses after he'd wiped his eyes.

"Then why are you practically crying? Is that why you're so pissed at Hunter? Because Tori still isn't over him, meaning you _still _can't have your chance?"

The Samurai wasn't facing Dustin anymore; he'd gone to arbitrarily pluck strings on his guitar.

"Cam…why don't you just tell her how you feel? Maybe it'll help her some. I mean…if I'd been that close to someone, I'd feel like there was no one that could care for me again. You've gotta let her know there are other people that love her too, dude."

Cam stopped strumming the nickel-bound strings and met Dustin's eyes for the first time.

"You don't know what it's like, Dustin."

And this time, the tears did fall, and suddenly Dustin was overcome with grief for Cam. Here was Cam, the overlooked nice guy, and somehow, Dustin always thought that was his own role.

"No, Cam, I do. Trust me…I do."

"Uh…excuse me…is there a Cameron Wa-wantonbee? Wantonbee-"

"It's Watanabe," Cam grunted as he slapped the tears away in frustration.

"Ah, yes…sorry…um, there's a man on the phone that would like to speak with you."

Cam exchanged glances with Dustin before exiting the room to answer his phone call, leaving Dustin with his thoughts.

Dustin couldn't help but feel drowned in the fact that in making him one of the happiest people on Earth, Hunter had practically crushed Tori's world in the palm of his hand. Dustin didn't know if it was guilt or the fact that he was growing weary of his relationship with Hunter that made him feel like it somehow wasn't worth it. Was being with Hunter worth emotionally slaying his best friend? Was it worth living a life of secrecy and paranoia? Dustin just had to hope that Hunter was indeed worth it, and that things would surely improve with time. They always did…right?

* * *

"What time'd you get in last night?"

"Not sure…I went and had a couple drinks with Cam. I'm surprised he could actually drink through that lip. Especially alcohol."

Hunter merely grumbled his response as he continued sipping his coffee, eyes not moving from the newspaper in front of him.

"So what got you so fired up yesterday?" Dustin asked, trying to hide the nervousness in his voice as he cracked several eggs on the warming skillet.

"Nothing to worry about…guess I was just frustrated."

"So you punched Cam?"

Hunter still didn't stray from the newspaper, even at the boldness of his boyfriend's question.

"Dustin…it was an accident. I'll call him later and apologize."

Dustin shrugged, pretending he didn't care Hunter wasn't telling him everything. Why should he? Besides, it was just a comment about Tori, right? What did it matter if Hunter didn't want to talk about being with Tori? Dustin didn't want to hear about it anyway…yet he still couldn't shake the nagging feeling that Tori had had the most 'intimate sex ever' on the beach with Hunter. That wasn't necessarily something he considered to be playing in his favor. What if Hunter got bored with Dustin and decided he wasn't ready to choose between his bisexuality? Then what? Would he go back to Tori and…Dustin didn't even want to think about it and he noticed his toast was burning.

"Shit."

"Can you open the window before the smoke detector goes off?"

Dustin glared at Hunter's inattentive form. His tone was so…uncaring, like Dustin wasn't really there but was more like there to entertain him or do his bidding. Still, Dustin complied, pushing the window up with a bit of excess force.

"Hunter," he began, sitting down across from him at the table.

"Hm?"

"I wanna talk to you."

Hunter's reply was slow, "So?"

"Can you put the damned newspaper down?!"

Hunter lowered the black-and-white reading material and fixed Dustin with an indifferent look, like he was still reading the paper.

"Cam told me what happened yesterday and—"

"Then why'd you ask?"

"I – because! I wanted your side of the story!"

"Right."

"Look, whatever's going on here needs to end. Now. I don't know what I did, but I'm sorry, okay? What the hell do you want from me?"

And then irony slapped Dustin like a pissed off 9-month-pregnant woman he'd just taken the last tub of Ben & Jerry's from; he sounded _just _like Hunter had nearly 7 months ago. He remembered the specific conversation…and now his blood began to run cold as he realized their progress was now going in reverse. Now, Dustin was bringing them apart and Hunter was merely waiting for him to decide when.

"Honestly, Dustin…I don't know what I want from you."

Finally, Hunter's expression shifted to something with at least a few emotions playing across it.

"What do you mean?"

"This past month has been…strained. I feel like we're still together because we feel obligated to be…not because we want to. You're snapping at me every time I accidently touch a wrong string because of some stupid-ass song; you _obviously _don't trust me because you had to ask Cam what happened instead of coming after me to find out why I knocked the little bastard out—"

"Come after you?! You shouldn't have run like a little bitch!"

Dustin's words seemed to rebound off the eerily white walls before a deafening silence filled the room.

"Like a bitch, right? I shouldn't have run? Maybe you shouldn't have jumped to conclusions like the asshole you've _been _for the past few weeks."

"Look, you can't expect me to chase you; if you run away, I understand it as 'leave me alone; I'm Hunter and I'm brooding, wah;' not as 'please come and chase me to find out why I just decked one of our best friends.'"

"Oh yeah, that's good, Dustin, let's be sarcastic, shall we? That always helps matters, huh? See! It's like the more I'm around you, the less happy you are. Maybe this was all just a bad idea in the first place, huh?"

A fist belonging to a Megazord _must _have hit Dustin, because he felt all air in his body suddenly spill through his open mouth. Shock split through his body and he felt the color drain from his face. This was it. It was over. And he suddenly realized he couldn't lose Hunter; not now, not ever.

"Wait. Wait."

Hunter stared down at him as he stood but still hovered over the tabletop, his coffee losing its steam.

"You're…you're right. I-I know I've been a bit of an airhead lately…and I've been an asshole, and…I just..."

Hunter's expression didn't change, however, and he began to move away from the table; "I'm going for a run. Figure out something to do today."

"What do you mean?"

"Don't sit around here all day."

And with that, he was off towards his bedroom to change. With a sigh, the Earth Ninja flipped his slightly scorched eggs onto a plate and put down new toast. Was Hunter kicking him out? Where was he supposed to go? What was he supposed to do?

* * *

"I've gotta say, I wasn't expecting any visitors," she said, her voice a bit hoarse.

"We're not staying long, just get dressed," Dustin instructed, closing the door and getting a better look at the apartment.

"Where are we going?"

"Somewhere…when was the last time you went out just to have fun?"

Tori sighed, "I've just…been busy, you know?"

Dustin fought with the words he was about to say, but let them out nonetheless "Tor…you gotta get over Hunter."

Her eyes went wide as they locked with his own, "H-how…how'd you know?"

"I'm his best friend, Tori. But I'm yours too, and that's why I'm here. C'mon, let's go."

"What, so is Hunter just going around telling everyone about poor pathetic Tori?"

"No, Tori, it's not like tha—"

"Did he at least mention that I was a good screw? I hope so, 'cause I mean, if I'm gonna be some whore, I might as well be good at what I'm doing."

Her voice was dangerously ambiguous in its emotions; it was as if it didn't know if it wanted to break and cry or to snap and scream.

"Tori, Hunter never said anything bad about you…he…he misses you, I think."

Tori was silent, still searching for some form of treachery in Dustin's proposition.

"I can't go out Dustin…I really just don't feel like it."

"Then why don't we order a pizza, buy a movie on HBO and clean your house? It'll be like old times."

Tori couldn't stop the small grin that tugged at the corners of her mouth.

"Deal."

"Good; do we need cleaning stuff or do you have all that."

"We should probably go to Wal-Mart…I have like, laundry soap and dish soap; that's about it."

"Then let's get going!"

Tori began to head towards her room to change, and then turned to face Dustin.

"Why are you doing this?"

Dustin hesitated. If was going to reply, it needed to be a well thought out response; one that wouldn't upset her again.

"Tori, you've been my best friend for as long as I can remember…and it seems like since the Thunder Brothers came into our lives, we've kind of forgotten that. You drifted away with Blake, Shane was never the same while fighting Lothor, and I had no one to really hang out with but Hunter…so we became a lot…closer, I guess. Then, after Blake left, Hunter felt like hell, knowing that you were going through so much because of _his_ brother. Don't ask me how that works, but, that's just Hunter. Anyway, I guess we just got pushed away from each other with all this crap that's been going on. So…this is me trying to make up for that…and to say I'm sorry."

Tori was quiet, meaning Dustin had no idea if she was taking his slight monologue positively or negatively. What seemed like an eternity passed before Tori was spilling her saline tears onto his dark yellow shirt as she gripped him firmly.

"Thank you…thank you so much Dustin."

He rubbed her back comfortingly and whispered encouraging words, wondering whether or not this would be how his life would be with Hunter.

* * *

"Is it safe for me to stay here?"

Hunter spared him a single look that looked anything _but _nice; "Yeah."

Dustin sighed as he sat down next to Hunter on the couch. He was staring straight ahead at the TV set, seemingly intent on keeping his eyes glued to it.

"Hunter…this is stupid."

"Really?"

Dustin sensed the remaining hostility in his voice.

"Really."

"So does that mean you're done being such an ass?"

"You could say that, yeah."

"Then I guess this was pretty stupid," Hunter said, finally grinning.

Dustin looked over at his boyfriend with a goofy smirk slapped on his face; "You know…I always thought there was something that people did to make up, you know?"

"What do you mean?"

Dustin merely continued to smile before Hunter caught on with a boisterous laugh; "You're horrible, Dustin. Really horrible."

A few moments of silence ensued before Hunter looked at Dustin again, a wide smile decorating his face.

"Now who's horrible?"

Hunter lay in something very similar to heaven. He hardly looked down at Dustin, who was almost asleep on his chest. Each breath he took, Hunter could feel shake his body. A certain unity had enveloped them and he welcomed it willingly. Several booms outside drew his conscience to the weather. Thunderstorm.

"I have to leave, Dustin."

"Hm?"

"I…Sensei Amino, he's making me leave for an undisclosed amount of time…"

Dustin lifted his head, his eyes meeting Hunter's.

"What do you mean, Hunter? I barely get to see you as it is," he replied, his voice wavering.

How could this happen? How could it happen now? It was such a crucial part in their relationship, why did Hunter need to go _now_? It…it wouldn't work. An undisclosed amount of time? He could be gone for weeks, months, maybe even years.

"I know, Dusty, I know. It's just…he wants me to go away for some special training; he hasn't told me all about it yet, he just wanted me to get prepared to leave."

But Hunter's explanation fell upon deaf ears. Dustin was beyond upset now.

"When?"

"When what?"

"When do you have to leave?!"

"I…Dustin, calm down."

"When?!"

"Tomorrow…"

That was it. Dustin broke down, the tears audible and his pain tangible. Hunter cringed, trying to comfort his boyfriend to no avail.

"Dustin, it'll be fine. We'll be fine. We'll get through it before you know, and we'll be together again. I promise."

It went on for hours, long into the night. Dustin's faint sobs were eventually replaced by light hiccups and slight murmurs of "I love you." It didn't help Hunter's conscience at all, and he felt as if his world was being ripped apart even more so than it already had been. First losing Tori, now losing Dustin. Life had truly dealt him a shitty hand.

When morning arrived, a dull gray light flittered through the blinds in slits, causing a dismal atmosphere. Dustin was completely quiet as Hunter got ready, packing small things and washing and brushing; normal things really. Only he wasn't going anywhere normal – Hunter was going to some place devoid of human life, maybe millions of miles from Dustin in order to do some ninja bullshit. It was times like these where Dustin hated the fact they'd been touched by the Power. He hated the fact that people could just take his normal life and crush it with his super-hero life. It was times like these he wished someone would just take his ninja powers for good and leave him alone like a normal human.

"Are you ready?"

Dustin looked up through his bloodshot eyes at Hunter's simple attraction. His face seemed neutral like he was casting emotions into the abyss lost somewhere in his inner body.

"…yeah," Dustin's hoarse voice replied.

They made their way to the airport in silence, the radio playing in its regularity. Dustin almost wanted to curse it for its ability to have a regular schedule uninterrupted by life's obstacles. It seemed whoever was in charge of playing the songs that early morning was really intent on making both of them depressed. Songs about leaving, songs about missing…songs about falling out of love. When you're gone…you still have all of me…and then, Dustin heard it. A song some emotionally draining for him that the only thing he could do was absently sing along to keep the tears from taking over his body.

"Your voice was the soundtrack of my summer; do you know you're unlike any other? You'll always be my Thunder. And I said; your eyes are the brightest of all the colors, I don't ever wanna love another. You'll always be my Thunder. So bring on the rain, and bring on the thunder."

He watched numbly as Hunter made his way through the security check, never looking away in order to keep sight of his crimson sweater. The tears were blurring his eyes like a torrential tsunami, but he dare not let them stop him from seeing Hunter off. And when he moved from sight to head to his gate, Dustin hurried to the upper platform to watch his plane fly off.

His eyes easily found the AirHarbor jet and he wiped the tears from his face angrily, not caring who saw his tearstained face. He saw the passengers boarding and couldn't help but wonder how many other people were letting go of people they loved more than themselves. He wondered how many people's lives were being ruined by that sickeningly ugly white, blue, and golden jet.

He saw the turbines fire up, saw the plane begin to reverse to get on to the runway. And for a moment, he thought he saw messy blond hair and a shock of crimson in one of the windows…and he felt his hope skyrocket. Hunter would be back. He knew it. Hunter would come back for him, and Hunter would still love him. He had to believe, because his hope was the only thing he'd have.

An ominous ripple in the sound barrier let Dustin know that the weather was just as unhappy as him as he heard the thunder continue.

"Bring on the pain…and listen to the thunder," he whispered to himself as the plane – Hunter – left him for who knew how long.


End file.
